National Policy Statement Submission follow up letter to the Minister for the Environment Feb 2011

View the original letter here.

New Zealand Freshwater Sciences Society
Hon Dr Nick Smith Minister for the Environment Parliament Office Private Bag 18888 Parliament Buildings Wellington 6160
Dear Dr Smith
Re: National Policy Statement, Freshwater Management

As President of the New Zealand Freshwater Sciences Society (NZFSS), and on behalf of the Executive Committee and its members, I am writing to you to encourage you to complete the National Policy Statement on Freshwater Management. It would now appear timely that the statement should be linked with the upcoming completion of the series of public consultation meetings relating to the final report from the Land and Water Forum (LWF). The NZFSS supports the outcomes and recommendations from that report and notes that in several instances the report alludes to the importance of a timely completion of the National Policy Statement in Freshwater Management.
As noted in Recommendation 48 of the LWF report, it is important to “promulgate a National Policy Statement for fresh water quickly”. You will also be aware of the intense public interest in the area of freshwater management based on attendances at LWF public consultation meetings. The NZFSS believes that the NPS in Freshwater Management is essential in providing certainty to stakeholders and setting future directions in freshwater management, as well as providing the national direction for regional councils to better manage New Zealand’s freshwater resources.
The NZFSS would also urge you to quickly resolve whether the issue of vires relating to what is possible for a national policy statement under the Resource Management Act. The Society believes that too much is at stake for New Zealand’s most important resource and that there is an opportunity to maintain momentum generated by public interest in freshwater management, for this issue to be used as an excuse to further prolong the NPS in Freshwater Management.
Yours sincerely,

David Hamilton President, New Zealand Freshwater Sciences Society